How are illegible or partially received facsimile transmissions handled in international patent applications?
The USPTO has specific procedures for handling illegible or partially received facsimile transmissions in international patent applications. According to the MPEP section 1834.01:
“Where a document is illegible or part of the document is not received, the document will be treated as not received to the extent that it is illegible or the transmission failed.”
This approach is consistent with PCT Rule 92.4(c), which states:
“Where a paper has been transmitted by telegraph, teleprinter or facsimile machine, it shall be treated as duly signed or stamped, as the case may be, if the name of the person appearing to have signed the paper or the name of the person on whose behalf the stamp appears to have been applied is indicated on the paper as received.”
In practice, this means that if a facsimile transmission is partially illegible or incomplete, the USPTO will only consider the legible and received portions as officially submitted. The illegible or missing parts will be treated as if they were not received at all. This underscores the importance of ensuring clear and complete facsimile transmissions when submitting documents for international patent applications.
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